Welcome to My Lensography
The idea for making a lensography came after a particularly productive week when I published about 30 lenses. I probably won't see another week like that again.
My hobbies are the subjects for most of lenses. I have always been a collector - everything from bird feathers and stamps as a kid to autographs and Indian artifacts as an adult. After Hurricane Ivan flooded my home in 2004, I came up with the bright idea to sell most of my collectibles. I did well on eBay, but I wish I still owned some of the better pieces.
Since the hurricane, I have concentrated on autographs and documents. I have built a fairly large collection with some nice pieces.
I have always had an interest in prehistoric American Indians, but last year I decided to spend some time learning how to find Indian artifacts using a methodology. That has paid off. Since last October (2007), my wife and I have found hundreds of Indian artifacts, including about 75 unbroken arrowheads. I think arrowhead hunting might be my favorite hobby yet. It's great excercise too.
I also like to fish. Before the hurricanes drove us from the Alabama coast, I fished the Gulf of Mexico and the backwaters often. Now, I live on a small lake near Birmingham and catch freshwater fish.
Our daughter lives in Colorado, so we spend a lot of time in the Rocky Mountains. In the last few years we have ventured out from Colorado to the Black Hills and Badlands of South Dakota and Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks.
My wife and I love to travel. We have been to Europe several times and we've seen a lot of the Caribbean. I take tons of pictures when we travel that turn out fairly well, but I wouldn't call myself a photographer.
My hobbies are the subjects for most of lenses. I have always been a collector - everything from bird feathers and stamps as a kid to autographs and Indian artifacts as an adult. After Hurricane Ivan flooded my home in 2004, I came up with the bright idea to sell most of my collectibles. I did well on eBay, but I wish I still owned some of the better pieces.
Since the hurricane, I have concentrated on autographs and documents. I have built a fairly large collection with some nice pieces.
I have always had an interest in prehistoric American Indians, but last year I decided to spend some time learning how to find Indian artifacts using a methodology. That has paid off. Since last October (2007), my wife and I have found hundreds of Indian artifacts, including about 75 unbroken arrowheads. I think arrowhead hunting might be my favorite hobby yet. It's great excercise too.
I also like to fish. Before the hurricanes drove us from the Alabama coast, I fished the Gulf of Mexico and the backwaters often. Now, I live on a small lake near Birmingham and catch freshwater fish.
Our daughter lives in Colorado, so we spend a lot of time in the Rocky Mountains. In the last few years we have ventured out from Colorado to the Black Hills and Badlands of South Dakota and Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks.
My wife and I love to travel. We have been to Europe several times and we've seen a lot of the Caribbean. I take tons of pictures when we travel that turn out fairly well, but I wouldn't call myself a photographer.
My Outdoors Blog
- Billco's Outdoors
- Fishing, hiking, arrowhead hunting and more.
Link to My Denver Colorado Site
- Denver Colorado Tourist Guide
- Whether you live here and are looking for something new to do, or are coming here for a vacation, this website will give you the insider's view of Denver.
Link to My Gulf Shores Travel Guide Site
- Gulf Shores Travel Guide
- There is truly something for everyone on the Alabama coast, and most people will have more choices than their time or budget will allow.
This guide will help you to plan and prioritize your trip before you leave home, helping you to get the most out of your Gulf Shores vacation.
Link to My "Collecting Celebrity Autographs" Site
- Collecting Celebrity Autographs
- Tips for building a valuable autograph collection.
My Autograph Blog
- Billco's Autograph Collecting
- Autograph news, values, and pieces from my collection.
Travel Lenses
- Visit Heidelberg, Germany
- While in the U.S. Army, I was stationed near Heidelberg. I spent many weekends in the city and loved it. I have only been able to visit the city once since then, and considering the exchange rate, it might be a while longer before I get back.
- Visit Schwetzingen, Germany
- I was stationed in Schwetzingen while in the Army. It is a nice little city with one of the world's most beautiful castle gardens.
- Rocky Mountain National Park
- We own property near Rocky Mountain National Park. We love the Park and the little town of Estes that sits just outside one of the gates.
- Carnival Cruise Lines Shore Excursions
- We try to cruise at least once every couple of years. We usually cruise to the Caribbean out of New Orleans or Mobile. Twice we've cruised to the eastern part of the Caribbean, out of Miami and Port Canaveral. I have learned a few things about shore excursions that I share in this lens.
- The Best Seafood Restaurants on the Alabama Beaches
- I lived on Pleasure Island for eleven years. Seafood restaurants are everywhere. This lens highlights some of the best ones.
- Things to Do in Gulf Shores - Orange Beach, Alabama
- There's more to do on Pleasure Island than play in the sand and wade in the water.
Autograph Lenses
- Adventures In Autograph Collecting
- Advice for putting together a valuable autograph collection. Includes the story behind some of my pieces.
- Autographs on Ebay - A Buyer's Market!
- The best autograph bargains are on eBay. It doesn't have to be risky.
- Batman - Autographs from the 1960's TV Series
- Covers the signing habits and current values for the autographs of the cast of the campy 1960's TV classic "Batman."
- Gone With the Wind Autographs
- Explores autographed material from the cast of one of the one of the most popular movies of all time, "Gone With the Wind."
- Collecting Bonanza Autographs
- "Bonanza" is the most popular western in the history of TV. Values and signing habits of the cast.
- Collecting the Autographs of the Honeymooners
- Jackie Gleason's "Honeymooners" was a classic TV situation comedy short on frills, but long on genius. This lens covers the signing habits and current values of the four main cast members.
- I Love Lucy Autographs
- Everybody loved "I Love Lucy" when it first hit TV. People still love it today. The signing habits and values of the four main cast members is detailed in this lens.
- Collecting the Autographs of the Rat Pack
- Values and signing habits of Frank Sinatra's "Rat Pack"
- The Wizard of Oz Autographs
- The "Wizard of Oz" wasn't an instant success, but it has since became a TV classic and a video evergreen. The autographs of the main cast members and the Munchkins are covered in this lens.
- Collecting Celebrity Signed Checks
- Because of the coming demise of the bank check and the fact that the supply of checks signed by any celebrity is finite, I expect select celebrity check collecting to explode in the not to distant future.
- Collecting Signed Books By NASA Pioneers
- The autographs of the NASA pioneers are blue chip investments. Signed books by the astronauts will grow in value as the supply continues to shrink.
- The Three Stooges Autographs
- The Stooges signed tens of thousands of autographs during their career and some of them were signing until the day they died, yet key autographs are hard to find and cost a bundle when you do find them.
My Arrowhead Hunting Lens
- How To Hunt Arrowheads
- This is the one that started it all. My arrowhead lens is the first one I created, and it remains my favorite. I explain how I find my artifacts. It works.
Bessemer, Alabama Indian Mounds
- Bessemer Alabama Indian Mounds
- The Bessemer Mounds were first occupied during Late Woodland between 800 A.D. and 1000 A.D. From 100 A.D to 1500 A.D., three Mississippian phase mounds were built over the Woodland village.
Today, most people living near the site have no idea that the mounds ever existed.
My Alabama Wildlife Lens
- Wildlife in North Central Alabama
- We live in north central Alabama in the foothills of the Appalachians and have thousands of acres of forest outside our back door. We see a lot of wildlife.
Fishing Lenses
- Fishing for White Amur (Grass Carp)
- White amur are huge fish that are a lot of fun to catch. Advice on how to catch some of those big fish you see swirling the water.
- Take A Kid Fishing!
- I worry that too many kids are missing out on something that we used to take for granted - fishing.
My SquidVids
- Batman Starring Adam West Video Showcase
- Video clips from the 1960's classic TV series - Batman!
- Hollywood Palace Video Showcase
- Some GREAT clips from this 1960's variety series - the Beatles, Rolling Stones, the Supremes, the temptations, Frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong, more, more, more... Where else can you see Dean Martin roll his eyes and tell jokes at expense at those wacky kids, Mick Jagger and the rest of the Rolling Stones?
- Honeymooners Video Showcase
- Video clips from best sitcom in TV history, at least to me.
- Robert Plant Alison Krauss Video Showcase
- It's doubtful that any fan who enjoyed Led Zeppelin's debut album back in the day could have envisioned this collaboration. Zeppelin fronted by Robert Plant was rock excess at its finest. Alison Krauss' subtle fiddle and pure mountain soprano is anything but excess. Who would have thought, that it would sound so amazing?
- The World Of Superman Video Showcase
- Most of what's here is the odd stuff that was once almost impossible for the average Superman fan to enjoy.
Clips from the serials, cereal commercials, toys from cereal boxes... there's a lot of good stuff here. - Andre The Giant Video Showcase
- Select videos of one of the greatest attractions in pro wrestling history.
- Buddy Rogers Video Showcase
- Buddy Rogers is generally recognized as one of the best, if not the best, wrestling performers of his time. He was a villain that the fans loved to hate.
- Antonino Rocca Video Showcase
- Antonino "Argentina" Rocca (real name Antonio Biasetton) was one of the top box office draws in wrestling history. In the 1950s he was the biggest star on the East coast, and nationally he was at the same level as Gorgeous George.
- Jackie Fargo Video Showcase
- From the late 1950's until the mid 1970's Jackie Fargo was the biggest wrestling draws in the deep south.
- Fleischer Cartoons Video Showcase
- Millions love Betty Boop and Popeye. Fleischer Studios left a legacy that will survive most animation being produced today.
- American Bandstand Video Showcase
- American Bandstand went national on August 5, 1957, airing weekday afternoons. It was a smash hit with kids. Soon the show was receiving 15,000 letters a week, more than any of ABC's other shows.
Squidoo City Guides
- Orange Beach, Alabama - City Directory
- Orange Beach is a great place to live or visit. Lots of information here.
- Gulf Shores, Alabama - City Directory
- Need to research you next beach vacation? Start here.
- Estes Park, Colorado - City Directory
- Estes Park is the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park.
- McCalla, Alabama - City Directory
- In just the last few years, McCalla has become a very desirable place to live.
- Bessemer, Alabama - City Directory
- Bessemer is located in north central Alabama between Birmingham and Tuscaloosa. Soon after its founding, Bessemer became known as the "Marvel City" due to its rapid growth.
The Comics
- Who Is Bob Kane
- Bob Kane created one of the most innovative characters in comic book history, and one that ranks among the most well known American pop culture icons - Batman!
- Who Is Green Arrow?
- Most of today's Green Arrow fans were introduced to him in Season Six of the TV hit Smallville, but Green Arrow has a history that goes all the way back to More Fun Comics #73 in 1941.
- Fleischer Cartoons Video Showcase
- A short historym with classic videos of the groundbreaking animation studio.
The Beatles
- Who Was Eleanor Rigby?
- Paul McCartney continues to firmly deny that Eleanor Rigby was a real person. It would be an amazing coincidence if Paul pieced together a name that just happened to be the name of a real person who's grave was very close to the spot where he first met John Lennon. Just a few yards from Eleanor's grave near St Peter's Church is the tombstone of a man named McKenzie.
My eBay Lens
- Buying Collectibles on Today's eBay
- When most people think of auctions, more likely than not, the next thought is going to be eBay. eBay is one of the most recognizable names on the internet. eBay, for a myriad of reasons, has become a buyer's market for almost everything. Vintage collectibles, on average, can be bought for a fraction of what comparable items would have sold for 10 years ago.
Miscellaneous Collectibles
- Collecting Ephemera - Paper That Wasn't Meant To Survive
- Ephemera are paper items that were originally meant to be discarded after use, but have since become collectibles.
Professional Wrestling Lenses
- Vintage Professional Wrestling Collectibles
- My wrestling lenses are gathered here.
The Video Rental Business
- Video Xpress Movie Rental Stores
- Video Xpress opened its first store in Bessemer, Alabama in 1983. It opened with every VHS tape that was on the market at that time - 200 tapes. By the time of it's sale to Movie Gallery Inc in November 1994, it was a chain of 53 stores with an inventory of over a half million tapes.
Hurricane Ivan
- Hurricane Ivan
- Hurricane Ivan put 18 inches of water in my home. Floods change lives.
Reader Feedback
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- dc64 dc64 Nov 26, 2008 @ 4:34 pm
- You and my dad would get along, you both really like fishing. Me? Not at all, it's so boring, and besides that, I really feel sorry for the fish. I once lived in an apartment near an Indian Burial Ground in Alabama, it was awful! A lot of strange and scary things would happen there.
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- allinfoisfree allinfoisfree Nov 18, 2008 @ 4:04 pm
- Awesome! My wife loves to travel, unfortunately, I'just can't justify the costs. I'll have to work on that....
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- AndyPo AndyPo Nov 14, 2008 @ 1:49 am
- Excellent lensography and some very good travel lenses etc. too. I shall come back and read more of them when I get a chance. Thanks.
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- d-artist d-artist Oct 30, 2008 @ 3:27 pm
- wow you would love arrowhead hunting here in Wisconsin, many people do this...I love hunting for things like that, i used to pan gold many years ago when I lived in California....5*
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- aj2008 aj2008 Oct 2, 2008 @ 10:02 am
- Hi I dropped by here to see who it was that left me a comment about my blog - thank you. What an incredible range of lenses. There are other lensmasters on here that you need to find, who do lenses on Native American Indians. Also check out Chef Keem, I think you would like to see what he does and he would like to see what you do too.
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